"We have received the message of the new assassination from the nearby security regime, as Mehlis presents his final report on al-Hariri's assassination to the UN Security Council," he told Aljazeera in an interview.

Tueni said in August he was atthe top of an assassination list

"This regime has killed al-Hariri, assassinated Samir al-Qasir and George Hawi. We have received the message," said Jumblatt, the leader of the Progressive Socialist Party.

In an interview broadcast on Russian television on Sunday, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad reiterated his country's innocence and said any attempt to impose sanctions against Syria would destabilise the region.

"I have heard President al-Assad ... say that imposing sanctions on Syria will cause instability in the area," Jumblatt said. "We have received the message. Thank you. However, we will continue calling for the truth no matter what the price."

A former Lebanese official countered Jumblatt's accusations.

"How would Syria benefit from assassinating Jebran Tueni at this particular point of time?" Wiam Wahab, a former minister, told Aljazeera.

"Syria is not that stupid to assassinate him a few hours before the UN Security Council holds a meeting to discuss Mehlis's report."

Security fears

Tueni had spent much of his time since August outside Lebanon, citing security fears. He was believed to have returned to Beirut late on Sunday.

"Lebanese officials received accurate information from the international investigation committee about an assassination list of several politicians," he told the Arabic-language Radio Orient in Paris in August. "My name is on top of this list."

Tueni's death has removed oneof Syria's harshest political critics

Tueni's uncle, Druze Telecommunications Minister Marwan Hamadeh, survived an attempt on his life in 2004.

Tueni was publisher, chairman of the board and general manager of Lebanon's leading newspaper Al-Nahar. A columnist at the daily, Samir Kassir, who also criticised Syrian policies, was killed by a bomb in his car in June.

Tueni's grandfather, also Jebran Tueni, founded Al-Nahar. His father Ghassan Tueni is considered the dean of the Lebanese press, having turned the newspaper into an institution respected by friend and foe across the Arab world.

"Al-Nahar newspaper was and will always be the voice of the free people in Lebanon. Al-Nahar will always remain a free voice despite the assassination of Tueni," he said.

"This [assassination] is a message to Lebanese journalism.

"However, Lebanese journalism and the free people are much stronger than the terrorist regime that has sent these messages," Jumblatt said.

High-profile

Tueni is considered by many Lebanese to be the most high-profile figure to have been killed since al-Hariri's assassination.

"To give you a sense of magnitude, with all 15 assassination attempts Gebran was only second to Hariri and the reason for this was his unique bravery"

Chibli Mallat,Lawyer and presidential candidate

Chibli Mallat, a lawyer and presidential candidate, said: "To give you a sense of magnitude, with all 15 assassination attempts Gebran was only second to al-Hariri and the reason for this was his unique bravery.

"He broke the taboo four years ago with an editorial against the Syrian presence which was taken up internationally," he said.

Mallat added that the UN Security Council should establish an international tribunal to punish those responsible for the killings.

Nadim Shehadi, head of the Centre for Lebanese Studies at Oxford University, said the killing would continue to create a state of fear and uncertainty in Lebanon.

"It's spreading an atmosphere of terror and it works. It is on everybody's mind," he said.